Preview – Razorbacks Host Gators Thursday Night

kylie magar January 4, 2023

FAYETTEVILLE – The Arkansas women’s basketball team (14-3, 1-1 SEC) looks to keep the momentum rolling on Thursday night, as the Razorbacks host Florida (12-3, 1-1 SEC) on SEC Network+. Both teams are coming off their first wins in conference play, and Arkansas hopes to pick up a win in a series the Razorbacks trail, 30-12. Tipoff is set at 7 p.m. inside the confines of Bud Walton Arena in a white out game, in which fans are encouraged to wear white. The game’s sponsor is JB Hunt.

GAME INFORMATION

Date: Thursday, Jan. 5
Time: 7 p.m.
Opponent: Florida
Location: Bud Walton Arena (Fayetteville, Ark.)
Watch: SECN+
Listen: Razorback Sports Network from Learfield
Promotions: White Out, Junior Razorback Holiday Appreciation and UA Faculty and Staff Holiday Appreciation and Liberty Bowl Trophy will be located at upper south entrance (from doors open to the end of halftime)
Game Sponsor: JB Hunt
Tickets: Buy HERE
Arkansas Game Notes
Florida Game Notes
Live Stats

STORYLINES

Arkansas women’s basketball has received votes in the latest AP and WBCA Coaches polls, after having been ranked for four straight weeks
The Razorbacks bounced back at Kentucky with a big 71-50 win after previously going on a three-game losing streak. Arkansas’ win at Kentucky marked the first time since 2003 the Razorbacks have left Lexington with a win
Hoping to keep the momentum rolling in a tough league, Arkansas is looking to pick up a win over Florida on Thursday, as the Razorbacks are back home at Bud Walton Arena
Arkansas is seeking to get off to its best start in the SEC slate since the 2018-19 season with a 2-1 start
The Razorbacks are 7-1 at home this season and hope to improve upon that mark with a dub
Arkansas finished the non-conference slate at 13-2, with its win total leading the country for majority of the non-conference season. The team played the maximum allotted games in the non-conference season with 15
The team has a well-balanced offensive attack with four players averaging double digits in scoring, almost all five starters
Samara Spencer leads the Razorbacks with 15.7 points per game and 4.5 assists per game with her 76 total assists on well on pace of surpassing her total last season
Saylor Poffenbarger has brought a huge defensive presence to the team, leading the way in rebounding with 8.0 per game, 119 of her 136 rebounds coming on the defensive side. Poffenbarger also ties as the team’s leader in blocks with 19
Erynn Barnum is the second leading scorer with 15.4 points per game, while leading the SEC in field goal percentage (.622), which she has for majority of the season. Barnum also is tied for a team’s most 19 blocks
Makayla Daniels leads the team in steals with 25, while also averaging 13.4 points per game
Daniels continues to move steadily in career all-time records. She is No. 23 in scoring (1,202), which is seven away from tying Director of Basketball Operations Amber Shirey at No. 22 (1,209). Daniels is also No. 18 in career assists (259), only six away from tying Lyndsay Harris at No. 17 (265), as well as tied for 10th in career starts (102)
Chrissy Carr puts up 11.0 points per game and leads the squad with 35 3-pointers
Arkansas gets to the line 24.94 times per game, which is fourth in the country, second in the SEC behind LSU
In the SEC, Arkansas leads in 3-point attempts per game (26.8) and is No. 2 in 3-pointers per game (8.35)
The Razorbacks have outrebounded opponents in 11 games. The team’s 31.29 defensive rebounds per game is the 12th most in the country

SCOUTING FLORIDA

Florida was projected to finish sixth in the SEC Preseason Media Poll, as well as seventh in the Coaches Poll
The Gators are coming off a successful 21-11 season, 10-6 in SEC play. Florida’s NCAA Tournament stay was finished after the first round, dropping to a talented seventh seed UCF (69-52) at the Storrs regional
Florida has gotten off to a great start at 12-3, finishing the non-conference slate with 11 wins and just two losses to Florida State (92-77) and No. 23/18 Oklahoma (95-79)
The Gators’ biggest wins of the year have come at Miami (76-73, OT) and at Texas A&M (55-48)
Leilani Correa leads the Gators with 16.0 points per game
Nina Rickards pulls down a team’s most 6.4 rebounds per game
KK Deans has team’s most 57 assists and 29 steals
Head coach Kelly Rae Finley served as interim head coach at the start of last season and was elevated to head coach on Feb. 28, 2022. She was named the Spalding Maggie Dixon Rookie Coach of the Year by the WBCA, as well as the USA Today Sports Network SEC Coach of the Year and semifinalist for Naismith Coach of the Year

HISTORY AGAINST THE GATORS

Florida holds a 30-12 edge over Arkansas
This series goes back to 1992, Arkansas’ first season in the SEC, as the two teams will go head-to-head for the 43rd time of the series on Thursday
Arkansas has won seven of the last 10 meetings in the series
The Razorbacks are 7-11 against the Gators in games played in Fayetteville. Arkansas beat the Gators 84-80 the last time the two teams played at Bud Walton Arena on Jan. 14, 2021
The Razorbacks fell to Florida in Gainesville last season, 76-67. The Razorbacks saw four players in double digits, led by Spencer who logged 19 points, while Sasha Goforth followed with 18. Jersey Wolfenbarger tallied 15 points

LAST TIME OUT

Arkansas made history by beating Kentucky in Lexington for the first time since 2003 with a 71-50 win on the road
In Arkansas’ first SEC win of the year, Poffenbarger matched a career-high 17 points along with seven rebounds, three assists and two blocks
Barnum tied Poffenbarger with a game-high 17 points, while also putting up triple-double type numbers with eight rebounds, a career-high seven assists and three blocks
Daniels was the big reason why the Razorbacks were able to blow the game wide open with 11 points. She tallied three 3-pointers, all in the third quarter, while also logging four assists
Spencer tallied five assists, while Rylee Langerman was a part of a handful of game-changing plays to lead the team in efficiency at +23, while also registering six points and seven rebounds in 22 minutes played off the bench
Arkansas racked up a season-high 22 assists and a season’s best 81.8 (9-of-11) free throw percentage

UPCOMING

Arkansas travels to Missouri to face the Tigers on Sunday, Jan. 8 at 2 p.m. The game can be watched on SEC Network+.

MORE INFORMATION

For more information about Arkansas Women’s Basketball, follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @RazorbackWBB and on Facebook at Facebook.com/RazorbackWBB. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube Channel, “Kickin’ It In The Neighborhood” for an inside look at the Razorback women’s basketball program and check out The Neighborhood podcasts at CoachNeighbors.com.